Australia Day

Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi Oi Oi! Yesterday, we celebrated Australia Day (or as I like to call it – Straya Day)! It happens every year on January 26th to mark the anniversary of the first fleet of British ships arriving here in Australia (which happened in 1788), so it’s sort of like the ‘founding day’ of the country and is celebrated nationwide by all Australians, residents, and those becoming citizens. The build up to the holiday was unmatched – people wearing Australian flags as capes, wearing funky hats and dressed in the iconic green/bold Aussie soccer/cricket jerseys. There was also plenty to do in the city, including the International Street Food Festival that I mentioned briefly in my last post, picnics all over town, fireworks at the Docklands, and the annual, traditional Australia Day – Melbourne parade on Swanston Street in the city. We live close to Swanston, so we could hear all the festivities from our window, including the national anthem, and the announcer talking about several special populations who make up this beautiful nation! Church was also very festive, giving out giant blow up Australian flag flip flops (for the pool), beach chairs, and a cricket bat; they also had some people come up on stage who had never tried Vegemite before, and they were truly squirming in discomfort haha! I’ve never had Vegemite before, but I have had Marmite, and that alone has scarred me for life – ack!

Despite having only lived here for six months, we really got into the spirit of Australia Day! It’s hard not to love this country and all it has to offer, and I consider us adopted Aussies, as we certainly feel right at home and have never felt out of place (since so many people here are from all over the world)! This country has afforded us such incredible opportunities, once-in-a-lifetime experiences, and has caused us to grow in so many ways. We continue to learn on a daily basis, and I feel like I could never learn enough in this wonderfully diverse city and nation. I may have gone a bit overboard, but I got really excited and decorated our apartment in Aussie flags, and our dining table with Aussie napkins, toothpicks, stuffed Aussie animals — you name it! I also lined up a menu of dishes for the occasion, and sought out help from some of my Aussie friends on traditional foods to make for the day and settled on the following:

Brunch: sourdough toast with smashed avocado, poached egg on top, feta cheese sprinkled on top (very common brunch food at restaurants around the area) with bacon on the side!

Dessert/snacks: pavlova (very Aussie dessert, although its origin is contested between here and New Zealand, but either way, it’s delish! see above // recipe from A Sweet Muddle) + Tim Tams (of course!)

If you look closely, you can see the little wombat, koalas and kangaroo ;)

We had such a relaxing day and watched TV shows at home while snacking on delicious food! It was uncharacteristically cool yesterday (but then again, not really for Melbourne, lol), which made us want to stay in even more. We talked about how Australia has so quickly become like home for us, and how much we love it, and how that love and adoration grows on a daily basis. We are getting more and more excited about sharing that love with family members and friends who plan on visiting us soon (my mom comes in March, YAY!), and we hope they fall in love with it and stay with us forever ;-) haha. Again, we are so grateful for this beautiful journey we’ve been blessed with, and to be able to specifically mark our half year point with such a joyous and fun occasion yesterday! #Straya!

2 Comments

Lauren
January 28, 2015

KELLY!!!! Thank you for enlightening me on this. I’ve looked at calendars for years wondering what in the world Australia day is. Don’t ask my why I never bothered to look it up on my own. I love that you made such a festive table scape. Every time I read your blog I learn more about Australia and I am SO HAPPY that you and Will are becoming the very definition of “Bloom where you are planted” (I think I said that to you before! lol). I hope I’ll be one of the people to come visit you guys. Fingers crossed. : )

Lauren!!! Your comment made me laugh :D I had no idea what it was either until I looked it up last month, but happy I could’ve provided some knowledge to you ;) You are SOOO sweet, and you know how much I appreciate you and your encouragement! I realized how little I knew about Aus until we arrived here – so much to learn still that I hope to write about! We hope so too, I have a feeling you’d never leave ;)

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about us

hi! we are the Herrings – Will & Kelly. together for 8 years, married for 2, and loving every moment of this new adventure together.

melbourne, australia

Melbourne is located in the state of Victoria in Australia. voted five years in a row as a the 'most livable city in the world', it boasts a diverse, urban and laidback lifestyle. it offers the finest in arts, culture, sports, outdoor activities, food and more! it's now called 'home' by us, and we love it so!